Florence – 12 April was the official opening day of the Sustainable Thinking exhibition held at the famous Florence-based brand’s exhibition space, a narrative experience presenting the pioneering ideas of Salvatore Ferragamo, an eco-designer before the term was invented. His search for natural, recycled and innovative materials began in the 1920s, and continues with the brand’s most recent experiments in green fabrics. 

This is the context surrounding the choice of eco-sustainable products by Fulgar, a centre of Made in Italy excellence and international leader in the textile industry for the production of man-made fibres. The company has a long-standing commitment to sustainability in both corporate and production terms with a green strategy and an entire portfolio of eco-products.  

These include EVO® and Q-NOVA®, a bio-based yarn and recycled polyamide respectively, which have been selected for applications in fabrics by Clerici Tessuto and Maglificio Ripa, companies that  share Fulgar’s Made in Italy traditions and its emphasis on environmental issues.   

Clerici Tessuto presents a fabric containing 87% with EVO®, the bio-based Fulgar yarn made from castor oil, a naturally-occurring plant not grown for food. This totally-renewable resource does not require large amounts of water or take up land that can be cultivated for growing food crops.  

The Maglificio Ripa fabric contains 89% Q-NOVA®, Fulgar’s eco-friendly fibre that makes corporate production methods more sustainable because it is obtained exclusively from regenerated raw materials made using mechanical rather than chemical processes. It forms part of the eco-sustainable Earth collection, which includes a range of Intimate, Beachwear and Athleisure fabrics as well as providing a response to the increasing demand for green products.

Fulgar has obtained a number of certifications. Its Oeko Tex Standard 100 class 1 recognition has been extended and updated to appendix 6 for all articles produced in 2019 - Fulgar is the first company to obtain it for polyamide across the range – and in 2009 it became the first company producing polyamide 6.6 in Europe to obtain the Ecolabel label. In 2016 it obtained LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) for evaluation of the environmental impact of its entire product manufacturing process. Furthermore, in 2017 Q-NOVA® was included on the Higg Index, developed by the SAC (Sustainable Apparel Coalition),  which assesses the environmental impact of a garment’s entire lifecycle.

Clerici Tessuto is Seri.co certified, a quality mark for Italian silk fabrics, and OEKO TEX® Class II for cotton, polyamide and polyester fabrics.  

It is also one of the founders of the F.D’O. Il filo d’oro network of companies, a certified Italian supply chain that is totally traceable from yarn to fabric, all involved in research and innovation in the development of increasingly sustainable materials, substances and processes.

Clerici Tessuto has guaranteed these investments by obtaining certification for the various yarns:
- GOTS for bio-based silk, wool and cotton with fully traced origins.

- FSC for traced viscose from managed forests.

- GRS for post-consumer recycled polyester.

Maglificio Ripa is Oeko Tex certified and was one of the first textile companies to join Greenpeace’s DETOX programme to combat harmful chemical substances.